Given that he had trouble filling his show at the Bryant Park Tents during the Spring/Summer 2009 shows it’s not all that surprising that Carmen Marc Valvo has opted against staging a runway show in February at the tents.

Valvo has shown his designs at the fashion week tents for the last 10 years, but cites high costs — between $150,000 to $200,000 – and a dearth in retail buyers and press expected at the upcoming shows as his reasons for not showing his Fall 2009 collection at there this year.

Carmen Marc Valvo’s vice president of communications, Frank Pulice, was quoted in the Wall Street Journal as saying, “we didn’t know if we would have the audience we felt we needed to justify the cost of putting on that show — stores are cutting back on sending buyers to the shows, there’s less and less press coming. We didn’t feel it was worth the effort that was going to go into it.”

The New York-based designer is looking for a more cost-effective way to present his collection and is planning to show, according to the Wall Street Journal, possibly at a cocktail event during which models wearing his clothing will mingle with the crowds. Such an event would be aimed at an estimated 200 guests, versus the typical 1000-plus who had attended the designer’s shows at the tents. Pulice estimates that such a showing would cut costs 50% adding, “people can come and go or stay for a couple of hours and enjoy themselves — it’ll be a more inviting venue. And we’d love for people to see the craftsmanship close up — in the tents, you don’t get to see the craftmanship that goes into it.”